Understanding The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act

19 June 2017

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The Military Spouses Residency Relief Act (MSRRA) is important law, but it is very misunderstood. Passed in 2009, it actually amends the Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act (SCRA) to provide certain specific protections to military spouses. It can provide great benefits to military spouses, particularly in the area of state taxes, but there is lot of misinformation about it.

First, let’s read what it actually say, then we’ll talk about what it means.

What MSRRA Says

Voting: A military spouse may not be prohibited from voting in federal, state, or local elections if he or she is residing elsewhere due the spouse’s military orders.

Taxes: A military spouse may continue to maintain his or her properly obtained domicile, or state of legal residence, in a prior state, provided the domicile, or state of legal residence, is the same as the active duty spouse. This means that income earned by a spouse may be taxed by the state of legal residence and not the state in which the spouse is residing.

Land Rights: There is a part that pertains to the rights that residents of certain areas have with regard to public lands. This might include mining rights or homesteading rights. This is a tiny, tiny portion of the population, and you would know if it applies to you. I’m not going to get into further discussion of it here.

What MSRRA Means For Spouses

The most important part of MSRRA/SCRA is the part that allows you to obtain a previously obtained domicile, or state of legal residence, for purposes of state income taxation. This means that military spouses may not have to change tax states with each Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move. However, you must remember that under this federal law, the spouse may only claim MSRRA/SCRA protections if he or she shares the same domicile, or state of legal residence, as the active duty service member.

For example, Lt. Johnny Pilot is a legal resident of Florida, and he is stationed in Virginia. His spouse must also be a legal resident of Florida in order to claim Florida for state income tax purposes. If the spouse is a legal resident of any other state, he or she must establish Virginia residency upon the move to Virginia.

What MSRRA Does Not Say

MRSSA/SCRA is noticably silent on several issues of importance to military families. However, you will find people who will tell you that MSRRA somehow offers these protections.

MSRRA/SCRA does not say anything about vehicle registrations, inspections or insurance.

MSRRA/SCRA does not have any provision for establishing domicile in any location, except via the regular process that includes being physically present in the state. It does not allow the spouse to obtain the domicile of the service member.

How MSRRA Works With State Laws

This is the truly tricky part about MSRRA, but it’s not actually about MSRRA. It’s about state laws.

Under MSRRA/SCRA, states are required to give military spouses at least the protections listed in MSRRA/SCRA. However, states may go beyond what is required by the federal law. Many states give military spouses protections that are more generous than required under MSRRA.

Sometimes, this is just an act of kindness, but often it is due to misunderstanding of what the MSRRA/SCRA actually says, or sometimes even just poorly worded laws. Regardless of why, people often claim that generous state laws are actually protections provided under MSRRA. This can cause a lot of confusion!

I encourage you to read and understand the MSRRA law so that you can benefit from its provisions without accidentally trying to do something that it doesn’t permit. If you are ever in doubt about it, the legal services office on a base in the appropriate state should be able to give you guidance about MSRRA and any applicable state law.

The benefits in the MSSRA amendment to the SCRA are a great blessing for those who can benefit from them, but it isn’t the blanket rule that many people would have you believe. It has very specific protections and situations in which those protections apply. Understanding it is key to using it properly.

Do you want to know more about your military pay and benefits?

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So my spouse is a residence of Illinois and I am a residence of California but we are stationed in Guam and I am currently working! So I would have to pay Guam taxes? So I do not qualify for MSRRA? Can I change my residency to my spouses state?

Guam is a special situation and you definitely need to check with your installation’s legal services office to figure out what you need to do. I’m not an expert on Guam taxes and so it would be irresponsible to tell you anything! Good luck!

I am a legal resident of Florida stationed in Maryland. My husband is immigrating to the US and will be living with me in Maryland. Can he obtain Florida residency, or does he need to become a legal resident of Maryland?

This situation seems to fall into a murky area that sort-of falls under the new law but the new law isn’t at all clear. https://www.katehorrell.com/military-spouse-tax-law/ Under the old law, your husband would need to become a legal resident of Maryland because he wouldn’t fulfill the requirements to become a legal resident of Florida without physically residing there. The new law directs that military spouses may use the legal residence of their active duty husband or wife for purposes of voting and taxes, but does not say that they can become legal residents there, nor does it give any provisions for making that happen. As it is a brand new law, there will be some time for the states to interpret and implement it. Hopefully you have a few months for things to shake out. And congratulations on being able to live together!

I am in the exact same boat except that I moved to the US 5 years ago. I haven’t lived in FL (My husband’s state) and for us immigrants, the law is not clear at all since we don’t have our own state of residency. I think that if you interpret the new law in good faith, he can claim your state. That’s what I did 2 days ago at my new job.
I got my driver’s license in other states where I was living ONLY because of military orders. Even if I didn’t want to claim Florida, I don’t know what I would claim since I’ve lived in Northern Virginia and California and have worked and obtained a DL in both places.

I need help! I moved from Italy (green card holder) to WA DC (my husband’s duty station). Then we moved under military orders to California and Hawaii. My husband is a resident of Florida. I don’t know if I can claim FL since I have never lived there (MSRRA eligibility requirement). I had a DL in No Virginia and one in California. For the state of Hawaii, I’m not a resident since I am here only to support my husband’s orders, but what am I resident of? I know there’s an update to the act, but it’s not quite clear. Thank you.

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